Amy and Dying Young - Writers and Poets
Amy Winehouse’s death fed the Romantic mythos of artists dying at a young age in a blaze of glory. Dying at 27, she was preceded by other members of the 27 club, including Kurt Cobain and, of course, the holy trinity of Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, and Jim Morrison. Memorable actors have also died at a young age: Natalie Wood, Judy Garland, and James Dean. Poets: Sylvia Plath.
How do fiction writers fare? They seem to hang on for a while. Here is a list, their longevity expressed in Amy Winehouse lifetimes.
Author | Died | Poison | Greatest Literary Achievement | Winehouse Lifetimes |
---|---|---|---|---|
William Faulkner | 1962 | Alcohol | Parodied in Barton Fink | 2.4 |
Charles Bukowski | 1994 | Alcohol | Created the character, Henry Chinaski, a fine role model for our youth | 2.75 |
John Cheever | 1982 | Alcohol, Various Drugs | Featured in an episode of Seinfeld | 2.6 |
Jack Kerouac | 1969 | Alcohol | Name that was pronounced just like it was spelled | 1.75 |
Ernest Hemingway | 1961 | Alcohol | Inspiring John McCain to run for president | 2.3 |
Philip K Dick | 1982 | Amphetamines | Overdosed on Vitamin C | 2 |
Ambrose Bierce | 1914 | Alcohol | Inexplicably disappeared in Mexico | 2.666 |
William S Burroughs | 1997 | Heroin | Owned a most unusual typewriter | 3.1 |
Ayn Rand | 1982 | Speed/Dexedrine | Founded new religion based on book fatter than Bible. | 2.85 |